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Kōtarō Bokuto
is a third-year student at Fukurōdani Academy and the volleyball team's wing spiker, ace and captain. Appearance Bokuto has round, golden-colored eyes and spiky white-grey hair with black streaks; certain sections of it done up as if to vaguely conform to that of an animal, strongly amplifying the uncanny resemblance he bears to a horned owl. He has a medium build. His physical appearance in the anime is considerably less athletic and muscular compared to his physical appearance in the manga. Unlike most volleyball players, Bokuto wears knee pads that go up to his thigh instead of simply ending above his knee. Personality He has a playful, friendly, energetic and child-like personality and is described by his team as having mood swings, where even the slightest thing can change his mood which then impacts his performance. He was referred to by Yukie as 'simple-minded' because of this, but is both admired by his own team and the opponents for his impressive skills and morale-boosting demeanor. When he makes a comeback, he clearly shows his pride as the ace and believes he is the 'strongest'. Bokuto is energetic (similar to Hinata), often making jokes about everything and acting rather dramatically about his plays. His personality is so compatible that he gets along with many people. However, he's rather ignorant to other people's discomfort, such as with Tsukishima. Despite his general behavior, there are moments when Bokuto exhibits something akin to a wise form of intelligence, his words inspiring Tsukishima in Karasuno's game against Shiratorizawa. He occasionally displays kind, just traits, leaning towards defensive when during the 3 on 3 match (cats vs owls) Bokuto told Kuroo, Tsukishima and Lev off for ganging up on Hinata when he was attempting to score. He can be seen as "a little off-putting" during matches, as stated by Sugawara. Background Bokuto is one of the top five aces in the country, barely missing the top three. He is a third year student at Fukurodani Academy. Plot Tokyo Expedition Arc Bokuto has been training with his team when Hinata and Kageyama suddenly arrive. After practice ends, he takes note of the two first years, stating that this year is going to be interestingChapter 79. Sometime later, Bokuto's doing extra practice with Akaashi and Kuroo when the latter suddenly invites Tsukishima to join themChapter 85. At first, Tsukishima declines the offer and tries to leave, but Bokuto quickly stops him, insisting that he needs the first year to block for him because no one else will. Kuroo adds on, pointing out Tsukishima's position as a middle blocker to goad the first year into training with them. Tsukishima quickly falls for it. As soon as practice begins, Bokuto hits one spike after another, each one getting through Tsukishima easily. Bokuto celebrates excitedly, but Akaashi simply points out that Bokuto had won against only one blocker. Kuroo comes over, adding that a second blocker will be more of a challenge. As the practice resumes, Kuroo gives tips to Tsukishima while successfully blocking Bokuto's spikes. Bokuto then exclaims that Tsukishima's blocks are too weak, only for the latter to point out their height differences in response, irking the third year. Kuroo teases that if Tsukishima isn't focused, Hinata will soon out-skill him. This seems to affect Tsukishima as he excuses himself and leaves the gym. Right afterwards, Bokuto teases Kuroo for his blunder. That event doesn't seem to deter Bokuto from approaching TsukishimaChapter 87. The very next day, Bokuto seeks out the first year and asks him to train with him again, but he's rejected. However, that night, Tsukishima suddenly approaches Bokuto and Kuroo in the third gym, where they're practising. Tsukishima asks them why they're training so much when volleyball is only a club. Bokuto asks him back if he enjoys playing volleyball and Tsukishima replies negatively. Bokuto questions if it's because the first year sucks at the sport, annoying him. Bokuto explains that he's a lot better at volleyball than Tsukishima is, but he has only recently begun to find volleyball enjoyable. He used to get blocked all the time but after changing his spiking technique, he became nearly invincible. It was like his time had come. Bokuto remarks that if "that moment" exists for Tsukishima, he will really get hooked on volleyball. Sometime later, Bokuto's practising with Tsukishima and Kuroo again when he spots Hinata by the door of the gym. Hinata asks if he can join at the same time Lev does. With this many people, Kuroo suggests a 3-on-3. Although, the teams turn out to be extremely unbalanced because the shortest people (Bokuto, Akaashi, Hinata) end up on one team (Owls) while the other team (Cats) consists of the tallest. While Akaashi's skeptical about this, Bokuto and Hinata don't mind at all. The game soon starts and the Cats are doing better than the Owls. However, the match's interrupted shortly by a manager who announces that if the players don't wrap up their game soon, they will have to forgo dinner. Bokuto quickly halts the match. The next dayChapter 90, the 3-on-3 is continued. During a move, Bokuto faces off against three blockers and bounces the ball off Lev's hand so he can redo his spike. Hinata asks him excitedly what he did and Bokuto explains "tipping into the block". As the game progresses, the Cats gains the upper hand. The three blockers gang up on Hinata and Bokuto calls them out on it. However, Hinata takes advantage of his situation and performs a blockout, though it's accidental. Happily, Bokuto congratulates the first year and announces that he will teach him a special finishing move. On the last day of the training camp, Karasuno plays against Fukurodani. Using Bokuto's technique, Hinata pulls a successful feint and scores a point for his team. After Akaashi reveals that it's Bokuto who taught that to the first year, the Fukurodani players glare angrily at the captain. Bokuto remains optimistic though, stating that he won't let Karasuno get any more points. Bokuto dominates the match from there on, easily spiking through Karasuno's defense. However, he soon begins to make mistakes and after giving Karasuno two points, he freezes. His mood swing kicks in and he sadly tells Akaashi to not toss to him anymore. Akaashi simply tells the ace to take the time to cool down. Even with the captain out of the picture, Fukurodani doesn't fall apart though. Karasuno does, however, lower its guard and stops paying so much attention to Bokuto who's beginning to get restless waiting for the ball. In the final move, Akaashi tosses to Bokuto who spikes past Tsukishima and wins the game for his teamChapter 95. Afterwards, his teammates cheer him on, showering him with compliments. Having been reassured of his strength as the ace, Bokuto celebrates happily. The teams celebrate the last day of training camp with a BBQ. Bokuto and Kuroo seem to have a meat-picking contest (Bokuto being the winner). Statistics Bokuto used to specialize in the cross spike, but it kept getting blocked. Out of frustration, he decided to practice his straight spike (which was looked down upon when he first began playing) instead and eventually improved it to a level where it couldn't even be touched by his opponents. He also has an amazing ability of doing feints. He is also talented at performing wipes, and a good ball sense to hit an insane cut shot when faced against tall blockers. Bokuto's fragility as an ace draws out his other teammates' strengths, while at the same time becomes a strong foundation which isn't easily broken. It has also been stated by Kuroo that when Bokuto becomes serious he becomes as strong as a Top 3-tier Ace. Relationships Keiji Akaashi Akaashi seems to be Bokuto's friend and underclassman. The two make a powerful spiker/setter duo. Akaashi also knows Bokuto well enough to deal with his ups and downs during games, and the two have even been seen hanging out outside of practice. Bokuto tends to ask Akaashi for praise after performing an impressive move despite the setter being an underclassman. However, Akaashi tends to decline Bokuto's requests. Tetsurō Kuroo Kuroo and Bokuto seem to be close friends ,seeing as they are often seen pestering other people together. They have also been observed to have similar reactions to certain events, such as when Tsukishima asked them a question. Bokuto usually does extra practices with Akaashi and Kuroo, despite the latter being from another team. While the two are generally on friendly terms, they tend to have small contests against each other, though most of them are trivial; during the BBQ, they fought to see who could grab the most amounts of meat. Kei Tsukishima During the training camp, Tsukishima had developed a somewhat friendly relationship with Bokuto which consisted of Tsukishima and Kuroo blocking for the ace. However, as Tsukishima's development continued, Bokuto became a wise figure for the first year's curiosity on what volleyball meant to him. Fukurōdani Academy Although Bokuto appears to be the elder brother, or pillar, of his team, he is actually the "baby" that's supported by his family. During his mood swings, his teammates are usually responsible for caring for him, cheering him up, etc. However, they do trust him to bring himself back into the game just as how Bokuto trusts them to support him. Despite that, his teammates tend to desert the ace whenever he has his spiking practices due to them being endless. Bokuto is also close to the manager, who he borrows money from sometimes (though he usually forgets to pay her back). Trivia *Favorite Food : "Yakiniku " (Barbequed meat, usually beef) *Current Concern: ".... How do you write the kanji for worry (nayami)?" * His birthday is three days before the Autumnal equinox within the Japanese calendar. * His star sign is Virgo. * According to Akaashi, Bokuto has at least 37 weaknesses (Weakness #37 is that when he becomes fixated on one thing, he'll completely forget how to do anything else). * At last year's Spring High Tournament, he bought an unpopular t-shirt that reads: "The Wisdom of the Ace: Firstly, the figure of the ace is one that inspires his allies. Secondly, he should shatter any wall. Thirdly, he should hit any ball to his utmost ability." Unsurprisingly, he and Hinata find it cool. * Despite being the captain, Bokuto wears #4 rather than the expected #1. This is most likely because Fukurodani is the type of school where #4 is traditionally worn by the team's ace, and because he is very proud to be Fukurodani's ace. *'Nomenclature:' **Kōtarō (光太郎) - 光 (kō) refers to Light while 太郎 (tarō) is a very common masculine name. The character "太" in common usage means thick or big. The last character 郎 simply means Man. **Bokuto (木兎) - Horned Owl Quotes * "What will happen in the future and whether or not you can win the next match... for once, none of that matters. Crushing the guys in front of you, and the amazing feeling of having shown 120% of your strength, are everything." (To Tsukishima, Chapter 89) * "It's a matter of whether 'that moment' exists for you or not...If you experience that moment, it'll really get you hooked on volleyball." (To Tsukishima about why Bokuto goes to such lengths to practice volleyball, Chapter 89) * "Spiking isn't just about slamming the ball to the floor. If you keep your cool, you'll be able to see what action to take." (To Hinata, Chapter 91) * "Oho ho?" (Chapter 89) * "Oya, oya?" (Episode 8) * ""Akaaashiiiiiiii!!!!!"" References }} Category:Characters Category:Male Characters Category:Fukurōdani Academy Volleyball Club Category:Captains Category:Wing Spikers Category:3rd Year